Seven Snogs
by Ellie Biel
Summary: These days Heero didn't even bother wearing a shirt when he crashed on the couch, but Duo wasn't about to complain. A short seven part series written for the 7snogs community on LJ. Shonen ai, HeeroDuo.
1. Sunny Side Up

Title: Sunny Side Up  
Author: Ellie Biel  
Fandom: Gundam Wing  
Characters/pairing: Heero Yuy/Duo Maxwell  
Rating: G/PG  
Warnings: AU  
Word count: 739  
Notes: Written for 7snogs theme #7 "milk", part 1 in a 7 part series  
Disclaimer: The characters of Gundam Wing to do not belong to me and are used without permission for fun, not profit.

* * *

Duo wouldn't admit it to too many people, but he did actually enjoy cooking. Not that he was any good at it; he could never keep the eggs from turning brown on the edges and he had yet to broil a steak that wasn't part charcoal briquette when he was done, but it was _fun,_ building something from shapeless ingredients, and it could be challenging as well, like trying to judge what constituted a pinch of salt or figuring out how hard to squeeze the tube of butter to turn pancakes into miniature Goldilocks.

What he hated more than anything was cleaning up afterwards. It wasn't that he hated to get his hands dirty, it was more that he'd already gotten the reward, burnt as it almost always was, but with cleaning up all he had to show for his efforts was a clean place to work the next time. He appreciated having clean counters but that was always the next day.

So the first time he'd issued a tentative invitation to Heero to try out Duo's not-quite-famous egg and eggplant quiche ("What?" he'd asked Heero, "tell me that they weren't meant to go together!"), he was pleasantly surprised when Heero not only ate his entire portion (and asked for seconds), but he offered to help Duo clean the kitchen. With someone to chat with and shouldering half the chore, Duo was almost sorry to see the last dish dried and put away.

He'd been unable to stop grinning when Heero had told him they'd have to do it again some time.

Duo winced as the pan clattered on the stove, and he peeked out of the kitchen to see if he'd woken Heero. They'd had dinner together last night, proclaimed the carmelized onion pizza a success and the coconut bread a dismal failure, and this time after the dish towels had been hung to dry, they'd continued their conversation in the living room. Duo had lost complete track of the time until Heero's head kept nodding forward, and there had been no argument when Duo asked him to stay.

Using one hand, he cracked open two eggs into the mixing bowl and was pleased to see that this time he'd managed to keep the shells out. He'd hoped to have breakfast ready before Heero woke up and joined him, but at least he'd managed to have a pot of coffee brewing when a sleepy Heero shuffled into the kitchen. Duo was reaching into the refrigerator for the milk and when he closed the door he caught Heero rubbing the back of his head before he stretched his arms overhead and yawned.

It was cute, endearing even, but that wasn't what had Duo standing there gaping. It was the flash of skin when Heero's shirt rode up, and he managed to avert his gaze before Heero noticed. He turned to pour the milk in with the eggs, but in his haste he hit the carton against the bowl, tipping it over and leaving both Duo and the floor covered with raw egg. He slammed the carton down harder than he'd intended and ripped a long length of paper towel from the roll. It was at least twice as much as he needed but his good humor was rapidly dissipating.

"Sorry," he muttered as he bent down to wipe it up. "Looks like I woke up on the wrong side of bed this morning."

Heero got down on the floor with him and tore off one of the paper towels. He reached over to fold it over Duo's bangs and slid it down the length of the strand. "Got some in your hair," he said.

Duo wiped at his forehead with the back of his hand and folded over his wad of towels to keep the egg from dripping back out, "yeah, well," he shrugged as if to say "what can you do?" He returned to the mess on the floor with a clean section of paper towel, but he could feel Heero's eyes still on him and he looked up again. "Is there more?"

"Yes," Heero said, and it sounded to Duo as if Heero wasn't fully awake yet.

"Well my hands are full," he said, lifting the towels as much as he dared. "So feel free."

That morning, on the floor and over a combination of egg and paper towel, was the first time Heero ever kissed him.


	2. Two Peas

Title: Two Peas  
Characters/pairing: Heero Yuy/Duo Maxwell  
Rating: PG  
Warnings: AU  
Word count: 546  
Notes: Written for 7snogs theme #1 "uniform", part 2 in a 7 part series  
Disclaimer: The characters of Gundam Wing to do not belong to me and are used without permission for fun, not profit.

* * *

Duo's cooking had gotten better; there was no overnight improvement of epic proportions but after three breakfasts in a row without a single scorched egg, he was feeling quite pleased with himself, especially as every one of them had been with Heero.

It was nice, Duo mused as he surveyed the contents of his refrigerator, to have someone to cook for besides himself, and even nicer to have said person willing to help out in the kitchen. Heero was nearby, ready to hand Duo the ingredients he needed, and yet he was never in Duo's way, keeping clear of the stove and anywhere Duo's elbows might be moving. It was pleasant without being stifling and Duo enjoyed it immensely. He hadn't even minded the gentle ribbing he'd gotten for his insistence that all canned goods be arranged in the cupboards according to size and color. It appealed to the neat and orderly part of his brain and he knew that if he wanted pineapple for a glazed ham, it was on the second shelf with the blue labeled cans, and if he was after vaccum packed artichoke hearts, he'd find them on the yellow shelf.

At least Heero hadn't given him a hard time about the fact that Duo kept a healthy supply of canned foods. His cooking was improving, but that didn't mean that he didn't need a backup plan in case of disasters like the lobster bisque. It wasn't that it had tasted bad, but he'd been distracted while adding the sherry (and that was Heero's fault for wearing a shirt with half the buttons undone). Whoever said that sauteeing would burn off the alcohol content had obviously never had a cooking sherry hangover the next day. Chicken broth (red shelf) and toast had served them well for lunch, as they'd both slept until nearly noon.

Duo couldn't help smiling at the memory. Heero had looked pitiable when he'd woken up, with his red-rimmed eyes and stray bits of lint in his hair from using one of Duo's sweatshirts as a pillow. These days Heero didn't even bother wearing a shirt when he crashed on the couch, but Duo wasn't about to complain.

He decided that he'd test his luck with poaching eggs again; he'd yet to manage getting the egg whites just right, and he pulled the carton out only to frown at in in puzzlement. It felt rather odd and he realized why when he flipped open the lid. The past few days, Heero had been in the kitchen with him and Duo hadn't touched the carton in all that time. He saw the arrangement of eggs inside and started to laugh. It seemed that he wasn't the only one with a few idiosyncracies in the kitchen.

Heero had taken eggs from alternating sides of the carton, so rather than all the eggs being on one side, which Duo was used to and which shifted most of the weight to the end that faced the back of the refrigerator, they were in the center with the empty cups symmetric on either side. When Heero joined him in the kitchen, his face adorably confused, Duo couldn't resist abandoning the eggs and kissing Heero soundly.

Two hours later, they had frozen waffles for breakfast.


	3. All's Fair in Love War & Killing Zombies

Title: All's Fair in Love, War, and Killing Zombies  
Written for 7snogs theme #2 "jealousy"; part 3 in a 7 part series  
Disclaimer: The characters of Gundam Wing to do not belong to me and are used without permission for fun, not profit.

* * *

He was beginning to really hate Frank West.

It was his own fault for introducing Heero to Dead Rising and the joys of animated bloody combat. The turning point had been when Heero had discovered he could use a cash register as part of his arsenal against the relentless swarm of zombies.

Duo was tempted to trip the circuit breaker just to get Heero to remember that there was more in Duo's apartment than a video game console and a flat screen TV.

Although the graphics were impressive, Duo pulled his feet up onto the sofa and turned to watch Heero instead. On screen, Frank West was using a street sign as a scythe, but it was the little furrow between Heero's brows that Duo found most interesting, and the way his lips would split into a grin when he found a new, more interesting weapon to use.

It was the way he looked years younger, so different from the normally serious Heero that he'd gotten to know. Immaturity and Heero Yuy were two words he'd never have put together before, but despite his annoyance with his own success in convincing Heero that video games were _fun_ - he couldn't get angry.

He could, however, reach out and trace a fingertip along the shell of Heero's ear.

It was almost disappointing the way Heero responded, tipping his head toward the opposite shoulder and not taking his eyes from the screen. Duo licked his lips as Heero leaned forward, his fingers dancing over the controller. If that was a challenge, it was one he willingly accepted.

He arched his back over the arm of the sofa and yawned, stretching out one foot and sliding it behind Heero where he could feel the warmth of his derriere through the sock. He waited five seconds before wiggling his toes.

Heero was good, Duo noted. He didn't even flinch that time.

Duo lifted his foot and it took him three tries to get it under the back of Heero's shirt. When he traced the curve of Heero's spine, he got a reaction, but Heero still didn't turn to look at him.

This game was far more interesting than the one he'd paid sixty dollars for.

He removed his foot from Heero's shirt and waited. He knew what he wanted to do next, but he hesitated before carrying out the next stage of his plan, and in the end he chickened out and rested his foot on Heero's thigh instead.

He could feel Heero's muscles flex and thought that either video games provided more of a workout than they'd been given credit for, or he'd scored another hit on the Heero-meter.

Duo pulled his foot back and crossed his legs. He'd never noticed that Heero had a small freckle on his left earlobe. He leaned forward to get a closer look, and he felt triumphant when Heero shuddered as Duo's breath teased the inside of his ear.

He hadn't expected such a sudden victory, but he wasn't about to complain when Heero turned and fused his mouth to Duo's. He relaxed into the kiss right away, letting his fingers twine around Heero's hair.

Screw Frank West.


	4. Giraffe on Fire

Title: Giraffe on Fire  
Warnings: AU  
Word count: 926  
Notes: Written for the 7snogs community's theme #6 "argument"; part 4 in a 7 part series.  
Disclaimer: The characters of Gundam Wing to do not belong to me and are used without permission for fun, not profit.

* * *

Duo looked at his handiwork and frowned. "I don't know," he said, leaning forward to dab a little more red on the hair and nose. "I think I need to try it just one more time."

Heero started to argue, but Duo's cry of protest silenced him and he huffed out a sigh before resigning himself to Duo resumed his artistic endeavors. He still hadn't quite understood how it the job had fallen to _Duo_. It wasn't as if Duo had ever expressed much of an interest in art or in children, but he didn't seem to mind volunteering his time, and Heero suspected that being used as a test canvas was a perk Duo was enjoying just a little too much.

So far he'd managed to acquire a butterfly on his left cheek, a dolphin across his forehead, a Pikachu on his chin, and, on his right cheek, the clown Duo was currently working on.

If this face paint didn't wash off as easily as Duo had assured him it would, he was not going to be pleased.

When Duo had first asked him, Heero had assumed Duo was kidding. It had been completely random and out of the blue, and he'd refused to be a part of it until Duo had reminded him of all the nights that he'd let Heero hog the video game controller.

At least no one other than Duo was going to see him like this.

Duo was frowning again, and Heero thought it was a bad sign until Duo looked at him with a gleam in his eyes and a grin. Then he _knew_ he was in trouble.

"I still need to practice," he said. "The clown looks like he was painted by Picasso or Dali."

"Kids should be exposed to different types of art."

Duo rolled his eyes. "Heero, that may be true, but what four year old can you think of that wants a burning giraffe on their cheek?"

"One with good taste?"

Duo ignored that comment. "Unbutton your shirt."

Heero eyed the paintbrush suspiciously. "Why?"

"Like I said, I need more practice."

"No. Oh, no, you are not painting any other part of my body - Duo, I said no!"

Duo had put the brush between his teeth and was unbuttoning Heero's shirt with the ease of someone who'd done it before. "I'll make it up to you," he mumbled around the wood in his mouth. He looked up at Heero and leered. "Promise." He slid the shirt off Heero's shoulders and pulled his chair closer to Heero. "You won't regret this."

"I doubt that," Heero muttered.

Five more painted on tattoos later, Duo proclaimed he was finished. "Want to see?"

"Not really."

Duo ducked his head and kissed Heero on his unpainted nose. "You were a really good sport. I really will make it up to you."

"Duo, when people talk about kissing and making up, this isn't exactly what they meant." He lifted his chin and leaned forward to plant a kiss of his own on Duo's lips. "But...it's okay."

It was. He felt silly, a little embarrassed, and Duo had almost poked him in the eye with the brush at one point, but it had been nice, being close to Duo. Heero leaned forward a little more to reach behind Duo's neck and bring him in closer for a much more satisfying kiss, leaving Duo with a bit of smudged Pikachu on his face. It was too bad it wasn't edible.

Duo was carefully putting away the paints and he brought his brush and the coffee cup he'd been using to rinse it off to the sink, and when he turned around, he looked a little guilty.

Heero felt a sneaking suspicion coming on. "What?"

"Well, it's like this," he said, "I really appreciate your letting me practice. It was a lot of fun, and I think I did get a lot better. You'll notice if you check the one between your shoulder blades before you get in the shower. And by the way, the one near your neck _is_ a burning giraffe, and I think it would look cool on any preschooler."

Duo cleared his throat and began backing out of the kitchen and toward the bathroom. "And I know you'll see the humor in this-"

Heero got to his feet and began advancing on him. "Tell me these are water based paints."

"Oh! Yes, they are!" Duo looked relieved, but he continued his retreat toward the bathroom. "It's just that-" He turned and fled the short distance to the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. "There is no children's fair this weekend and I've got dibs on the shower!"

Heero stared at the door in disbelief as Duo's words sank in, and for a minute he thought of all the ways he would carry out his plans of revenge against Duo for this prank, or whatever it was. He shook his head, and started back toward the kitchen.

He stopped.

He hadn't heard Duo turn the lock, and really, Heero had far more need of the shower than Duo did, and it was Heero's apartment. As a good host it was his duty to make sure Duo knew where the towels were located. He put his hand on the doorknob, and an evil grin spread across his face. Duo had told him to check out the burning giraffe, after all, and it would be remiss of him if he didn't do it right now, before he forgot.

He turned the knob.


	5. Pins and Needles

Title: Pins and Needles  
Rating: PG13  
Warnings: AU  
Word count: 721  
Notes: Written for the 7snogs theme #3 "embrace"; part 5 in a 7 part series.  
Disclaimer: The characters of Gundam Wing to do not belong to me and are used without permission for fun, not profit.

* * *

Duo ran his fingers through the strands of flyaway hair tickling his nose, partly in an attempt to tame them so they wouldn't make his nose twitch but mostly because he enjoyed the feel of it. There was little else he could do at the moment; he was, for all intents and purposes, well and truly trapped on the sofa unless he wanted to roll Heero off him and onto the floor, and at the moment he was content to remain where he was.

They'd crossed a line in their relationship last night, or at had at least come very close to scuffing it out. He'd known Heero would follow him into the bathroom and hadn't really planned on getting in the shower, but when Heero had barged in after him, shirtless and looking at him with the most wicked gleam in his eye, he realized just how small Heero's bathroom really was.

He'd felt a rush of warmth through him as Heero placed his hand on the wall beside him and reached into the small linen cabinet for a couple of towels. Heero had turned away, leaving Duo feeling breathless, and he'd invited Duo to join him while he turned on the water.

His tone had been teasing, and the exaggerated waggle of his eyebrows reminiscent of Groucho Marx, but underneath, Duo had suspected Heero might not have minded too much if Duo had said yes.

He'd said no, and he wasn't sure if the brief flash of disappointment he saw in Heero's face was merely a reflection of his own feelings.

They'd chosen to stick to water and cola that night, forgoing alcoholic beverages through a mutual, unspoken agreement, but Duo had felt lightheaded nonetheless, and throughout the night, every time Heero's arm brushed against his, he could feel it in the pit of his stomach.

It was the first night they'd spent together where Duo felt like he was on a first date.

Conversation hadn't been stilted and they'd still laughed together and provided Mystery Science Theater style commentary for the movie that they'd found while channel surfing, and when Heero's arm had come to rest on the back of the sofa, Duo had swallowed and let his head drop onto Heero's shoulder.

He knew they'd laugh about it later, at how nervous they'd been and how cautious Heero had been before finally dropping his arm around Duo's shoulder. The slow caress of his fingers had sent a shiver down Duo's spine, and then Heero had simply stopped, leaving Duo equal parts confused and relieved with just a dash of disappointment thrown in for good measure.

He'd laughed aloud when he realized Heero had fallen asleep.

Duo's nose twitched again and he stroked Heero's hair as if it were a cat. Last night had also been the first time they'd slept together - _sleep_ being the operative word - and it had been surprisingly comfortable.

Not counting the crick in his neck from lying half on and half off the sofa a good portion of the night.

He twisted his body a little and hooked a leg over Heero's to drag them back onto the cushion. Heero mumbled something and then banged his head against Duo's chin, making Duo see stars for a moment before Heero was brushing his hair from his brow.

"You ok?"

Heero looked so concerned that Duo answered in the most direct way possible, by holding Heero's face in both hands and kissing him lightly before urging Heero to lie back down on top of him. The arm that had been on the inside of the sofa was starting to tingle as the blood rushed back through it, but he gave Heero a squeeze and let his hand remain on the small of Heero's back. Heero's shirt was a wrinkled mess, twisted about his torso, and the tip of Duo's pinky lay right at the hem, on a small bit of exposed skin.

In a minute he was going to need to get up, have a glass of water, and flex his fingers until the pins and needles went away, but for now all he wanted was to savor the feel of Heero's body pressed against his own and Heero's breath against his neck.

His voice was hoarse when he replied, quite honestly, "Never better."


End file.
